Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson have announced prize money for US track athletes at Paris Olympics. [PC: Getty, Instagram/Nightcap podcast]

How much do USA track athletes earn for winning gold at Olympics? Why did NFL stars Shannon Sharpe & Chad Johnson pledge 25k to athletes? Explained

Modified Jul 30, 2024 11:48 GMT

Former NFL stars Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson have announced that they will each pay US track athletes $25,000 if they win the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Sharpe and Johnson were discussing the Summer Games during their Nightcap podcast on Monday (July 29). When the discussion turned to the financial perks of winning top honors at the quadrennial event, they learned that the Olympic committee pays American athletes $37,500 for a winning gold medal, $22,500 for bringing home the silver medal, and $15,000 for bronze.

According to a report by Forbes, that amount pales in comparison to what other countries pay for their Olympic medalists. For example, gold medal winners from Malaysia will earn roughly $236,000, winners from Kazakhstan will take home $250,000 and those from Singapore will earn roughly $737,000.

That said, gold-medal-winning track and field athletes will also earn an additional $50,000 from World Athletics. The international governing body for track and field events announced earlier this year that a cash prize of $50,000 will be given to each gold medal winner at the Paris Olympics.

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Shannon Sharpe promises 50k prize money to USA track athletes who break world record at Paris Olympics

Noah Lyles at the 2023 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Scotland - Getty Images

Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson were not pleased when they found out how much Team USA's track and field athletes get for winning a gold medal. The latter, especially, was dismayed to know that the athletes' hard work wasn't going to get rewarded properly.

"You done bust your ass for four years straight to represent our country and the payout saying, 'Thank you for the work you put in,' is 37 f--king thousand. Come on man," he said.

Additionally, Sharpe also promised $50,000 prize money to any Team USA track and field athlete who breaks a world record in the French capital.

"Hey, Noah Lyles, if you win the 100 meter gold, me and Ocho $25,000 apiece. Noah Lyles trained four years for nine seconds. I don’t give a damn what the event is — out of my pocket," he said.

They name-checked Noah Lyles, Sha'Carri Richardson, and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone when speaking about potential gold medalists at the Summer Games.